The Corner Bar

The Corner Bar is an American sitcom that aired as a summer-replacement series on ABC-TV in 1972 and 1973.

The show, created by comedian Alan King and veteran comedy writer Herb Sargent, was co-produced by King and comedian Howard Morris. The center of activity is a New York City tavern called Grant's Toomb [sic]. The series is notable for its inclusion of the first recurring gay character on American television. The show's producer, comedian Alan King, videotaped 10 half-hour episodes before live audiences, to be aired as a Wednesday-night summer-replacement series in 1972. Customarily, a summer series would return the following January as a mid-season replacement, but The Corner Bar didn't return until the following summer, and then as a Friday-night mini-series.

Gabriel Dell, originally a member of the Dead End Kids, starred as affable New York bartender Harry Grant. Grant presided over a motley crew of staff members and regular customers: sad-sack 65-year-old waiter Meyer Shapiro (Shimen Ruskin), cook Joe (Joe Keyes, Jr.), kooky waitress Mary Ann (Langhorne Scruggs), tipsy executive Phil Bracken (Bill Fiore), roughneck cab driver Fred Costello (J.J. Barry), and flamboyantly gay designer Pete Panama (Vincent Schiavelli), "a dead ringer for Tiny Tim in manner and dress," according to columnist Kay Gardella. The building was owned by landlady Jennifer Bradley (Anne Meara).

The show was taped in New York City, much to native New Yorker Gabe Dell's regret: his dressing room was robbed while the cast was before the cameras. "We're off to a good start," grumbled Dell. "I'm missing my address book and wallet. If we were making the series in Hollywood this would never have happened. Why we're making the series here I don't know. I was a dedicated New Yorker once myself." Dell remarked that the name of the corner bar was supposed to be Grant's Tomb, but the sign painter misspelled it "Toomb." Dell offered to "let it ride", reasoning that a small businessman in the same position would just shrug it off.

Blue-collar comedy
Producer Alan King gave out advance publicity that the show would make humorous observations about politics and current events, much as the current hit All in the Family was doing. The Corner Bar was actually more like radio's Duffy's Tavern, with its back-and-forth banter and blue-collar bartender. When owner Harry is resentful of celebrities patronizing a rival tavern, a radical suggests bringing in the Harrisburg Eight or the Chicago Nine. "No," says Harry, "I don't want no rock groups here."

As the series progressed, the scripts and the ensemble cast settled into a broadly comic groove. Dell's former colleague and close friend Huntz Hall appeared in "The Navy Reunion" as a con man. Another episode, "Harry and the Hoods", had Alan King (as himself) masterminding a scheme to scare off two extortionists. King masqueraded in slouch hat and pinstriped suit as Harry's ominous "godfather", with the regulars in costume as his mob:

Alan King: Right, boys? Phil the cabbie: Yes, papa. Fred the executive: Yes, papa. Pete the designer: You're so right, daddy!

Variety commented, "There was no message or pauses for sentiment, with everybody a character with eccentric flaws, and it worked quite well in broad comedy terms. [The] series utilized only one set, and it's a good one." Another critic agreed: "It's a light piece of nonsense but Gabriel Dell as Harry and the expert cast of farceurs carry it off." Despite good reviews, the series was not picked up for additional mid-season episodes.

Encore
The Corner Bar returned the following summer, but producer Alan King had to scramble to assemble a handful of new episodes. ABC needed an emergency fill-in to replace a failed summer series, Love Thy Neighbor. Thus the second season of The Corner Bar made its debut in midsummer (August 3, 1973) and ran for only six episodes.

Gabe Dell wasn't available for the rush assignment, so the tavern was taken over by the building's landlady, now named Mae (Anne Meara) and her late husband's business partner Frank Flynn (Eugene Roche). Regulars Phil and Fred were still on hand but now the only staff member was Meyer, and the gay designer was replaced by self-promoting actor Donald Hooten (Ron Carey). Like the previous year's series, the mini-series was taped in New York.

Alan King and Howard Morris continued as producers; Anne Meara's husband and comedy-team partner Jerry Stiller was now the associate producer. Meara was optimistic that the show would have a longer run: "Sure, we want it to go, and be picked up for the winter, but who knows, dat's-a-da show biz, right?" But the series ended after its six-episode encore. The Corner Bar has not been seen since its original runs in 1972 and 1973.

Cast

 * Gabriel Dell as Harry Grant, owner and bartender (Season 1)
 * J.J. Barry as Fred Costello, cab driver
 * Bill Fiore as Phil Bracken, executive
 * Vincent Schiavelli as Peter Panama, designer (Season 1)
 * Shimen Ruskin as Meyer Shapiro, waiter
 * Joe Keyes, Jr. as Joe, cook (Season 1)
 * Langhorne Scruggs as Mary Ann, waitress (Season 1)
 * Anne Meara as Mae, landlady (Season 2)
 * Eugene Roche as Frank Flynn, Mae's business partner (Season 2)
 * Ron Carey as Donald Hooten, actor (Season 2)